Adam Rosenwasser
arosenwasser@templeemanuelmd.org
Rabbi Adam Rosenwasser joined Temple Emanuel as Senior Rabbi on July 1st, 2020. Prior to this appointment, he served Congregation Beth Am in Los Altos Hills, CA and Temple Sinai in Washington, DC as associate rabbi. Rabbi Adam was ordained from the Hebrew Union College- Jewish Institute of Religion in New York in 2009. Rabbi Adam hails from Ann Arbor, Michigan and received his Bachelor’s Degree in History from the University of Michigan. Go Blue!
Rabbi Adam is passionate about creating meaningful Jewish experiences for people of all ages and backgrounds. He is especially interested in building relationships with the people he serves. Rabbi Adam also enjoys teaching torah using a wide array of texts, making worship engaging and fulfilling, advocating for a just and peaceful Israel, facilitating mussar (Jewish ethics) classes, and working for justice locally and globally. Rabbi Adam also serves as a volunteer chaplain for the DC Metropolitan Police Department.
Rabbi Adam’s other interests include musical theater, cooking and baking, swimming, reading, and raising his three children, Eliza, Simon, and Stella, with his husband, Shalom, and their dog, Annie.
Emily Short
eshort@templeemanuelmd.org
Ordained by Hebrew Union College–Jewish Institute of Religion in 2023, Cantor Short brings a unique blend of musical talent, Jewish learning, and community leadership. She earned dual Master’s degrees in Sacred Music and Jewish Nonprofit Management, and her journey has taken her from Southern California to New York, Los Angeles, and beyond. A graduate of Muhlenberg College with a background in Theatre, Music, and Jewish Studies, Cantor Short has dedicated her career to enriching Jewish life through music, learning, and connection. Cantor Short is a member of the American Conference of Cantors and the Women Cantor’s Network. She is also a trained mikveh guide by Mayyim Hayyim.
A graduate of Muhlenberg College with a background in Theatre, Music, and Jewish Studies, Cantor Short has dedicated her career to enriching Jewish life through music, learning, and connection. Before entering the cantorate, she worked with the National Yiddish Theatre Folksbiene and even performed as Chava in the original stage reading of Fiddler on the Roof in Yiddish before its acclaimed Off-Broadway run.
Cantor Short and her wife Frankie make their home in Petworth.
Warren Stone
rabbistone@templeemanuelmd.org
Rabbi Warren Stone served as rabbi of Temple Emanuel from 1988-2020. He received his BA in Near Eastern and Judaic Studies from Brandeis University and Rabbinic Ordination and an honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion. He has a D. Min. in Religion and Psychotherapy from Andover Newton Theological School and training from the Jung Institute in Zurich.
Rabbi Stone is known nationally for his leadership on Religion and the Environment. He has led delegations on environmental issues to the Congress and White House and has served on many boards, including the Global Advisory Committee for Earthday, the Coalition on the Environment and Jewish Life, the Washington Board of Rabbis, where he served as past President and ARZA/ World Union. He served as Vice President of the Interfaith Conference of Metropolitan Washington, a member of the board of the United Nations Association and on the Board of the New Orchestra of Washington. In March of 2015 Rabbi Stone was chosen by the United Nations Climate Change Secretariat to serve as Faith and Climate International leader for their new UN Climate Neutral Now initiative.
Rabbi serves as Co-Chair of the National Religion Coalition on Creation Care and founding chair of the Central Conference of American Rabbis’ Committee on the Environment. Rabbi Stone represented many national Jewish organizations as a UN delegate at the Conference on Climate Change in Kyoto, Japan in 1997 and in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2009, where he blew the Shofar and led interfaith programs and prayer vigils. His abstract, “Climate Change Beyond Diplomacy: Thinking Outside the Box,” was presented at the International Congress of Scientists in Copenhagen. In 2012 he spoke at the Vatican’s Pontifical University in Rome as a guest of the State Department and White House and served as a G20 World Religious Delegate at a conference on Faith and Sustainability in Seoul, Korea.
Rabbi Stone’s articles have appeared in many publications, including the Washington Jewish Week, Reform Judaism, Central Conference of American Rabbis Journal, The Jerusalem Post, Grist and many international news sources. His article, “A Jewish Response to Climate Change,” was published in The Climate Institute’s book, Sudden and Disruptive Climate Change, and he writes a blog called “climaterabbi” at climaterabbi.wordpress.com.
Rabbi Stone is married to Elaine Stone, an attorney at Covington and Burling. They live in Bethesda, Maryland and have three children – Nomi, Lia and Zach.
Alissa Miller
amiller@templeemanuelmd.org
Alissa Miller is thrilled to join Temple Emanuel as its Executive Director as of July 2025. Alissa comes to Temple Emanuel from another large reform congregation in Montgomery County – Temple Beth Ami – where she was exposed to all aspects of synagogue life as the temple’s first Operations Manager. Alissa enjoys helping congregants through their life cycle events and simchas, but also derives great satisfaction from working behind the scenes to make the “temple magic” happen.
Alissa’s professional background includes work as an intelligence analyst at the FBI and nonprofit management in the international education sector, focusing primarily on populations in Eastern Europe and former Soviet states.
Originally from the Boston area, she holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Russian Language and Literature and International Relations from Tufts University, and a Master’s Degree in Russian and East European Studies from Georgetown University, and spent several years traveling and living overseas.
She loves cooking, gardening, traveling, and playing Jewish geography, and is the proud mother of three teenage daughters.
Laura Naide
lnaide@templeemanuelmd.org
Laura Naide joined Temple Emanuel as the Director of Congregational Learning in July 2022. Laura’s educational philosophy focuses on developing Jewish identity through values, community, and learning. She is committed to creating an inclusive lifelong learning community that provides multiple avenues to experience the richness of Jewish life.
Previously, Laura worked at Congregation Etz Hayim in Arlington, Virginia (Director of Religious Education and Programming), and Beth El Hebrew Congregation in Alexandria, Virginia (Assistant Director of Education). She has a Master of Arts degree in Religious Education from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, a Juris Doctor degree from Georgetown University Law School, and a B.A. in Applied Psychology from California State University, Long Beach. Laura also holds the professional certifications of RJE (Reform Jewish Educator) and CJE (Conservative Jewish Educator). She is an active member of the Association of Reform Jewish Educators (ARJE) and serves on the Limud (learning) Committee.
Prior to becoming a full-time Jewish educator, Laura worked as an attorney for the federal government and consulted with several nonprofit organizations. She loves listening to podcasts and audiobooks on her commute, traveling to new places, concerts, and yoga. Laura and her husband Eric are the proud parents of Madeline and Sophia.
Tal brings a remarkable background to this role: from volunteering with Holocaust survivors and serving in the IDF, to working as a veterinary assistant. This past summer was his fifth summer at URJ Crane Lake Camp in Massachusetts, where he gained deep experience working with American Reform Jewish youth. Tal is eager to bring his creativity, warmth, and leadership to our community.
Dana Robinson
dana@templeemanuelmd.org
Dana has proudly been a part of the Temple Emanuel community since 2013. Originally from South Florida, she spent her formative Jewish years at Temple Solel in Hollywood, FL. Dana holds a BA in psychology from UMBC and is currently completing coursework for her Master’s in Innovative Early Childhood Education from the University of Colorado, Denver. Inspired by the Reggio Emilia Approach to Education, she is a passionate advocate for the voices, competencies, and rights of young children in our communities. Outside of Temple Emanuel, Dana is an avid musical theatre fan and actively volunteers and performs with several community theatres in the DMV area.
